‘Old-school downtown USA’: Antioch Theatre celebrating 100 years and counting
Over the past century, the Antioch Theatre has been down but never out as a simple fixture of life and entertainment in a small town.
“It’s the old-school, downtown USA,” says Michael Sheedy, a relative newcomer to Antioch and most recent owner of the long-standing business. “It’s really a family-centric community.”
Enough so that the theater has carried on as the longest continuously operating business in town, under the same name and in the same location. Opening day at 378 Lake St., was July 26, 1924.
The theater has weathered the conversion to digital production, emerged from the coronavirus pandemic and continued through several owners, various renovations and some tough times, including its near demise not long ago.
To celebrate that longevity and loyal patrons, Sheedy has been offering free shows weekly since the anniversary date and will continue through Oct. 5. The first was the 1924 silent classic “Sherlock Jr.” starring Buster Keaton, and he will finish with last year's hit “Five Nights at Freddy’s,” representing 10 decades of films.
The free showings also include period correct commercials, cartoons and/or tributes from each decade, taking viewers back in time.
Although it is among the older venues still operating, the Antioch Theatre was never an ornate movie palace like others built by studios in the early years of film. Rather, it’s a simple building that became a fixture downtown for generations of residents and visitors.
“We’ve got seniors from Antioch who used to come in as kids,” said Sheedy, who bought the property in December 2022 from investor Tim Downey. With community support in 2014, Downey revived the operation from deteriorating conditions and other issues.
The golden era
Partners Lyman B. Grice of Antioch and William C. Bryant of Bristol, Wisconsin, broke ground for the $40,000 new theater in September 1923. While still being built, they sold a half interest to the proprietor of a local resort hotel and his son, who managed the operation.
The first feature presentation was Zane Grey’s “The Wanderer of the Wasteland,” which used an early version of the Technicolor process.
The theater boasted modern conveniences and seating for 400. A balcony with another 100 seats was added in the 1940s and remodeled in the late 1960s, under the ownership of the Rhyan family, which built and operated a chain of theaters with 64 screens across northern Illinois. Their holdings included theaters in Libertyville and Fox Lake and outdoor theaters in Grayslake and McHenry.
Those balcony seats remain in use though the number has dropped to 55 to accompany 165 seats on the main floor as original narrow seats were replaced.
For most of its existence, the Antioch Theatre had a single screen. Space off the lobby to the east had been rented for other uses. The area was converted during Downey’s extensive renovation and reopened as a boutique space with a second screen and 36 seats.
A new era
Downey bought the building after it closed in May 2014 because of maintenance and other problems. He launched a public campaign to repair and revive it that included a village-backed ticket tax.
The $750,000 renovation included the boutique theater, new digital projection and sound, new screens, draperies and seating, a new marquee with classic features, redesigned facade and renovated lobby.
The theater was closed for most of 2020 and a portion of 2021 because of the COVID pandemic. Sheedy, whose full-time job is in public safety, said he and his wife were looking for a retirement project. They knew Downey and, after a pending sale fell through, they stepped up.
“It was the right time, the opportunity came up and we took it,” he said. “It was that simple.”
Months before the sale, the village approved a $1.50 per ticket tax, which is rebated to Sheedy, through 2032.
Sheedy added some movie memorabilia and is transitioning to digital delivery but otherwise hasn’t changed the operation much.
“Learning how the movie industry works is probably the most complicated part,” he said. “We try to book as many first-run movies as we can.”
According to Sheedy, the theater shows more than 70 different movies and draws more than 25,000 patrons downtown every year.
The village has been fortunate to have a movie theater downtown for the last 100 years, said Barbara Porch, executive director of the Antioch Chamber of Commerce.
“In years past, the Antioch community came together and provided the financial support the Antioch Theatre needed at that time,” she said.
“Families enjoy Antioch’s downtown in many ways and look forward to spending time with family and friends watching a new release or an old-time favorite,” she added.